Effects of Heat Treatment on the Physicochemical Properties and Electrochemical Behavior of Biochars for Electrocatalyst Support Applications.

The present work reports the synthesis and the physicochemical characterization of biochar from the organic wastes of nopal (Opuntia Leucotricha), coffee grounds (Coffea arabica) and Ataulfo mango seeds (Mangifera indica) as alternative electrocatalyst supports to Vulcan XC-72 carbon black. The biochars were prepared using pyrolysis from organic wastes collected at three temperatures, 600, 750 and 900 °C, under two atmospheres, N2 and H2. The synthesized biochars were characterized using Raman spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to obtain insights into their chemical structure and morphological nature, respectively, as a function of temperature and pyrolysis atmosphere. A N2 adsorption/desorption technique, two-point conductivity measurements and cyclic voltammetry (CV) were conducted to evaluate the specific surface area (SSA), electrical conductivity and double-layer capacitance, respectively, of all the biochars to estimate their physical properties as a possible alternative carbon support. The results indicated that the mango biochar demonstrated the highest properties among all the biochars, such as an electrical conductivity of 8.3 S/cm-1 at 900 °C in N2, a specific surface area of 829 m2/g at 600 °C in H2 and a capacitance of ~300 mF/g at 900 °C in N2. The nopal and coffee biochars exhibited excellent specific surface areas, up to 767 m2/g at 600 °C in N2 and 699 m2/g at 750 °C in H2, respectively; nonetheless, their electrical conductivity and capacitance were limited. Therefore, the mango biochar at 900 °C in N2 was considered a suitable alternative carbon material for electrocatalyst support. Additionally, it was possible to determine that the electrical conductivity and capacitance increased as a function of the pyrolysis temperature, while the specific surface area decreased for some biochars as the pyrolysis temperature increased. Overall, it is possible to conclude that heat treatment at a high temperature of 900 °C enhanced the biochar properties toward electrocatalyst support applications.

Optimizing Sparse Testing for Genomic Prediction of Plant Breeding Crops.

While sparse testing methods have been proposed by researchers to improve the efficiency of genomic selection (GS) in breeding programs, there are several factors that can hinder this. In this research, we evaluated four methods (M1-M4) for sparse testing allocation of lines to environments under multi-environmental trails for genomic prediction of unobserved lines. The sparse testing methods described in this study are applied in a two-stage analysis to build the genomic training and testing sets in a strategy that allows each location or environment to evaluate only a subset of all genotypes rather than all of them. To ensure a valid implementation, the sparse testing methods presented here require BLUEs (or BLUPs) of the lines to be computed at the first stage using an appropriate experimental design and statistical analyses in each location (or environment). The evaluation of the four cultivar allocation methods to environments of the second stage was done with four data sets (two large and two small) under a multi-trait and uni-trait framework. We found that the multi-trait model produced better genomic prediction (GP) accuracy than the uni-trait model and that methods M3 and M4 were slightly better than methods M1 and M2 for the allocation of lines to environments. Some of the most important findings, however, were that even under a scenario where we used a training-testing relation of 15-85%, the prediction accuracy of the four methods barely decreased. This indicates that genomic sparse testing methods for data sets under these scenarios can save considerable operational and financial resources with only a small loss in precision, which can be shown in our cost-benefit analysis.

Pure Aortic Regurgitation Complicated by Membranous Interventricular Septum Aneurysm Treated With Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement.

An 89-year-old woman with severe aortic regurgitation and an aneurysmal interventricular membranous septum extending into the aortic annulus underwent successful transcatheter aortic valve replacement. A challenging case because of the risk of valve mispositioning complications attributed to the co-occurrence of pure aortic regurgitation (very low calcium burden) with an aneurysmal interventricular membranous septum. (Level of Difficulty: Intermediate.).

Mr.Bean: a comprehensive statistical and visualization application for modeling agricultural field trials data.

Crop improvement efforts have exploited new methods for modeling spatial trends using the arrangement of the experimental units in the field. These methods have shown improvement in predicting the genetic potential of evaluated genotypes. However, the use of these tools may be limited by the exposure and accessibility to these products. In addition, these new methodologies often require plant scientists to be familiar with the programming environment used to implement them; constraints that limit data analysis efficiency for decision-making. These challenges have led to the development of Mr.Bean, an accessible and user-friendly tool with a comprehensive graphical visualization interface. The application integrates descriptive analysis, measures of dispersion and centralization, linear mixed model fitting, multi-environment trial analysis, factor analytic models, and genomic analysis. All these capabilities are designed to help plant breeders and scientist working with agricultural field trials make informed decisions more quickly. Mr.Bean is available for download at https://github.com/AparicioJohan/MrBeanApp.

Endocardite tardia na valva Melody: experiência multicêntrica no Brasil / Melody valve delayed endocarditis: multicentric experience in Brazil

INTRODUÇÃO E/OU FUNDAMENTOS: A valva Melody, indicada para revalvularização percutânea pulmonar, tem sido usada no Brasil desde 2013. Nos EUA a probabilidade de endocardite (EI) tardia é de 9,5% em 5 anos e 16,9% em 8 anos (mortalidade de 6,7%). Gradientes residuais (GR), faixa etária no implante e história prévia de EI têm sido implicados como fatores de risco. No Brasil, onde encontramos uma população heterogenea, não temos esta informação. Objetivo é determinar a incidência e os desfechos da EI tardia após implante de Melody no Brasil. MÉTODOS: Estudo de coorte observacional, retrospectivo, de pacientes submetidos a implante da Melody. Todos os centros implantadores foram contatados para reportar o número total de implantes e dos casos de EI, incluindo o momento do diagnóstico, manejo e o desfecho final. O diagnóstico de EI foi baseado em critérios clínicos, culturas, ecocardiograma e, por vezes, tomografia. RESULTADOS E CONCLUSÕES: 87 pacientes foram submetidos ao implante em 10 centros no Brasil. Em 9 anos de seguimento, 7 pacientes tiveram EI tardia (8,0%), com 2 óbitos (2,2% do total e 28% dos casos de EI). Em 3 pacientes o quadro foi agudo e em 4 sub-agudo. Um caso acometeu uma criança, sendo o restante em adultos, todos após 1 ano ou mais do implante. Um paciente possuía GR elevado previamente por "mismatch". A EI foi associada a piora importante do gradiente em 3 pacientes: um submetido a dilatação com balão e os outros 2 a troca valvar, com 1 óbito após cirurgia tardia. Os germes identificados foram S. aureus (1), S. viridans (1), Pseudomonas (1) e S. Cristatus (1). Em 3 pacientes as hemoculturas foram negativas. O manejo incluiu, além da antibioticoterapia, explante valvar em 3 (um óbito em paciente crítico, estenose grave e falência do VD), valvoplastia com balão em 1 e tratamento conservador em 3 (com 1 óbito devido a embolia pulmonar). Dos 7 casos de EI, em 4 identificamos fatores de risco que poderiam ter sido evitados: injeção intramuscular de anabolizantes, tratamento dentário sem profilaxia adequada, presença de piercing e tatuagem e história prévia de EI. Nos 4 casos curados nos quais a Melody foi mantida, observou-se estenose e/ou insuficiência discreta a moderada da valva. CONCLUSOES: A incidência de EI tardia na valva Melody no Brasil é significativa, mas não difere significativamente dos dados de literatura. Encontramos fatores de risco diferentes dos relatados previamente, muitos deles evitáveis. Além da incidência significativa, a EI pode se apresentar de forma aguda e ser letal.

Ideological Influences on Intergroup Attitudes in the Context of the Hague Court Boundary Dispute between Peru and Chile / Influencias ideológicas de las actitudes intergrupales en el contexto de la disputa fronteriza entre Perú y Chile ante la Corte de la Haya / Influências ideológicas das atitudes intergrupais no contexto da disputa fronteiriça entre Peru e Chile frente à Corte de Haia

Abstract In the context of the border dispute presented by Peru against Chile in the The Hague Court, this study analyzes the influences of two ideological motivational dimensions: Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) and Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) on a set of intergroup attitudes that involve both nations. To this end, a survey study of 196 Chileans and 223 Peruvians participants was conducted. The instruments used to measure ideology and political attitudes are the following ones: RWA Scale; SDO Scale; Scale of Intergroup attitudes between Chile-Peru and specific questions on interest in the Hague litigation and willingness to fight for one's country. The results show that in the Peruvian case attitudes of belligerence and alert and a greater willingness to fight for the country are better explained by the RWA, while in the Chilean case these same attitudes are explained both by the RWA as well as the SDO. On the other hand, pacificist attitudes are explained inversely by SDO in both countries. These findings support the hypothesis that intergroup dynamics between both countries have been marked by expressed actions of a Chilean expansionism versus a Peruvian vengefulness and suggest that equalitarianism will promote attitudes toward respect and cooperation between both groups, changing the frames of expansionism and vengefulness for one of a culture of peace.

Resumo Este estudo analisa as influências de duas dimensões motivacionais ideológicas: o Autoritarismo de Direita (RWA) e a Orientação à Dominação Social (SDO) em um conjunto de atitudes intergrupais que envolvem Perú e Chile, no contexto da disputa fronteiriça apresentada pelo primeiro contra o segundo na Corte de Haia. Para isso, foi desenvolvido um estudo com 196 participantes do Chile e 223 do Peru. Os instrumentos utilizados para medir a ideologia e as atitudes políticas são os seguintes: Questionário de RWA; questionário de SDO; questionário de atitudes intergrupos entre Chile é Peru e itens de interesse na disputa ante A Haia e a vontade de lutar pelo próprio país. Os resultados mostram que, no caso peruano, as atitudes de beligerância e alerta, e uma maior disposição de lutar pelo país são explicadas pelo RWA, enquanto no caso chileno, essas mesmas atitudes são explicadas tanto pelo RWA quanto pela SDO. Por outro lado, as atitudes pacifistas são diminuidas pela SDO nos dois países. Estos resultados corroboram á hipótese da dinâmica intergrupal entre os dois países, marcada por ações explícitas do expansionismo chileno versus revanchismo peruano; os resultados também sugerem que as ideologias igualitarias poderão promover atitudes de respeito e cooperação entre os dois grupos, alterando os esquemas expansionista e revanchista para uma cultura de paz.

Resumen En el contexto de la disputa fronteriza presentada por Perú contra Chile ante la Corte de la Haya, este estudio analiza las influencias dos dimensiones motivacionales ideológicas: el Autoritarismo de Derecha (RWA) y la Orientación a la Dominancia Social (SDO) en un conjunto de actitudes intergrupales que involucran a ambas naciones. Con esta finalidad, fue desarrollado un estudio por encuestas con 196 participantes de Chile y 223 de Perú. Los instrumentos utilizados para medir la ideología y las actitudes políticas son los siguientes: Escala de RWA; Escala de SDO; Escala de actitudes intergrupales entre Chile-Perú y preguntas específicas sobre el interés en el litigio de La Haya y la disposición de luchar por el propio país. Los resultados muestran que en el caso peruano las actitudes de beligerancia y alerta, y una mayor disposición a luchar por el país son explicadas por el RWA, mientras en el caso chileno, estas mismas actitudes son explicadas tanto por el RWA como por la SDO. Por otra parte, las actitudes pacifistas son explicadas inversamente por la SDO en ambos países. Estos hallazgos corroboran la hipótesis sobre las dinámicas intergrupales entre ambos países, las cuales han estado marcadas por acciones explicitas de expansionismo chileno versus revanchismo peruano; asimismo, los resultados sugieren que el igualitarismo promovería actitudes hacia el respeto y cooperación entre ambos grupos, cambiando los esquemas expansionista y revanchista por uno de cultura de paz.

Anti-carbamylated protein antibodies positivity and disease activity in Hispanic patients with established rheumatoid arthritis: An observational study.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to determine the prevalence of anti-carbamylated protein (anti-CarP) antibodies in Mexican Hispanics with established rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to assess their relationship with disease activity. METHODS: A cohort study was conducted in 278 patients with established RA during an 18-month follow-up. We measured IgG/IgM/IgA rheumatoid factor (RF), IgG anticitrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA) and IgG/IgM/IgA anti-CarP antibodies using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). For disease activity, we performed the 28-joint disease activity score with erythrocyte sedimentation rate (DAS28-ESR). Repeated measures one-way ANOVA was used to test the association between anti-CarP IgG antibody status and longitudinal DAS28-ESR scores. Patients were evaluated at baseline and at 6, 12, and 18 months during follow-up. RESULTS: Anti-CarP IgG antibodies were positive in 47.8% of patients and, accounting for all isotypes, in 9.5% of patients with negative RF and ACPA. Triple antibody positivity was present in 42.6% of patients in our sample. Anti-CarP IgG antibody positivity did not show statistically significant differences in mean DAS28-ESR when compared to anti-CarP IgG antibody negative patients at baseline, 6, 12 or 18 months. CONCLUSION: Anti-CarP IgG antibodies are not associated to a higher disease activity in Hispanic patients with established RA. Our findings suggest that the clinical value of measuring anti-CarP antibodies in RA diminishes over time.

A Power-Efficient Sensing Approach for Pulse Wave Palpation-Based Heart Rate Measurement.

Heart rate (HR) is an essential indicator of health in the human body. It measures the number of times per minute that the heart contracts or beats. An irregular heartbeat can signify a severe health condition, so monitoring heart rate periodically can help prevent heart complications. This paper presents a novel wearable sensing approach for remote HR measurement by a compact resistance-to-microcontroller interface circuit. A heartbeat's signal can be detected by a Force Sensing Resistor (FSR) attached to the body near large arteries (such as the carotid or radial), which expand their area each time the heart expels blood to the body. Depending on how the sensor interfaces with the subject, the FSR changes its electrical resistance every time a pulse is detected. By placing the FSR in a direct interface circuit, those resistance variations can be measured directly by a microcontroller without using either analog processing stages or an analog-to-digital converter. In this kind of interface, the self-heating of the sensor is avoided, since the FSR does not require any voltage or bias current. The proposed system has a sampling rate of 50 Sa/s, and an effective resolution of 10 bits (200 mΩ), enough for obtaining well-shaped cardiac signals and heart rate estimations in real time by the microcontroller. With this approach, the implementation of wearable systems in health monitoring applications is more feasible.

Independent and Joint-GWAS for growth traits in Eucalyptus by assembling genome-wide data for 3373 individuals across four breeding populations.

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in plants typically suffer from limited statistical power. An alternative to the logistical and cost challenge of increasing sample sizes is to gain power by meta-analysis using information from independent studies. We carried out GWAS for growth traits with six single-marker models and regional heritability mapping (RHM) in four Eucalyptus breeding populations independently and by Joint-GWAS, using gene and segment-based models, with data for 3373 individuals genotyped with a communal EUChip60KSNP platform. While single-single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) GWAS hardly detected significant associations at high-stringency in each population, gene-based Joint-GWAS revealed nine genes significantly associated with tree height. Associations detected using single-SNP GWAS, RHM and Joint-GWAS set-based models explained on average 3-20% of the phenotypic variance. Whole-genome regression, conversely, captured 64-89% of the pedigree-based heritability in all populations. Several associations independently detected for the same SNPs in different populations provided unprecedented GWAS validation results in forest trees. Rare and common associations were discovered in eight genes involved in cell wall biosynthesis and lignification. With the increasing adoption of genomic prediction of complex phenotypes using shared SNPs and much larger tree breeding populations, Joint-GWAS approaches should provide increasing power to pinpoint discrete associations potentially useful toward tree breeding and molecular applications.

Phenotypic Description of Theobroma cacao L. for Yield and Vigor Traits From 34 Hybrid Families in Costa Rica Based on the Genetic Basis of the Parental Population.

A comprehensive understanding of the genetic basis of target traits in any crop is critical to design breeding strategies for the development and release of new improved varieties. In this study, 34 cacao families were evaluated for vigor and yield related traits over the course of 6 years in Costa Rica. Linear mixed models provided the variance components for the partitioning of additive and non-additive effects. Heritabilities of yield over time ranged from 0.085 to 0.576, from 0.127 to 0.399 for vigor, and 0.141 to 0.146 for disease resistance traits. Significant (p < 0.001) general combining abilities were observed for ICS-43 and LcTeen-37 with negative effect on average yield (-0.674, -0.690), respectively. Specific combining abilities for yield had significant (p < 0.001) positive effect from the cross GU-154-L x UF-273 Type 2 (0.703) and strong negative interaction between ICS-43 and LF-1 (-0.975). A weighted index was used to select the top performers while providing the corresponding genetic gains. At an 1% selection intensity, yield component gains ranged from 17.8 to 331.9%. Agronomic traits such as branch angle, trunk diameter and jorquette height had lower genetic gains and lower heritabilities. In addition, the parents in this study were genotyped with a 96-SNP marker off-typing set and a significant positive correlation of 0.39 (p = 0.019) was found between genetic distance and specific combining abilities for yield. Preliminary comparison of clonal parents vs. seedlings yield in the family with the highest SCA suggest for the first time presence of heterobeltiosis in cacao.

Screening heteroatom distributions in zeotype materials using an effective Hamiltonian approach: the case of aluminogermanate PKU-9.

We introduce a method to allow the screening of large configurational spaces of heteroatom distributions in zeotype materials. Based on interatomic potential calculations of configurations containing up to two heteroatoms per cell, we parameterize an atomistic effective Hamiltonian to describe the energy of multiple substitutions, with consideration of both short- and long-range interactions. Then, the effective Hamiltonian is used to explore the full configurational space at other compositions, allowing the identification of the most stable structures for further analysis. We illustrate our approach with the aluminogermanate PKU-9, where we show that increasing the aluminium concentration changes the likely siting of Al, in agreement with experiment.

Computed tomography is a feasible method for quantifying bone density in Macaca mulatta.

Osteopathologies are a result of advanced age and decreased bone density and represent a global health problem. It is therefore important to generate models for longitudinal studies of the pathophysiology in order to improve early diagnosis and develop preventive therapies. For this kind of research, the use of computed tomography (CT) to evaluate bone health offers advantages over other techniques since it provides more complete information. The aim of this prospective, pilot study was to obtain measurements of the left femur from a population in captivity of 32 rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) in order to standardize the model for future research. Healthy subjects from 5 to 28 years old were chosen. Three groups with different ages were formed as follows: (1) 5-9 years, (2) 10-19 years, and (3) 20-28 years. Semi-automatic segmentation by threshold defined the regions of interest, which were subdivided in the range of 300-700 Hounsfield units (HU) for trabecular bone and >700 HU for cortical bone. Then, the proportional ratios of the volumes of trabecular bone and cortical bone were obtained. Significant differences (analysis of variance test) in the averages of Hounsfield units, cortical, and trabecular bone proportions from each age group proved that a decrease in bone density begins at approximately 20 years of age. The values presented here, as well as the method to obtain them from CT scans, can be used as a baseline in a primate model for long-term research in bone pathology diagnosis and treatment.

Genetic Parameters and the Impact of Off-Types for Theobroma cacao L. in a Breeding Program in Brazil.

Breeding programs of cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) trees share the many challenges of breeding long-living perennial crops, and genetic progress is further constrained by both the limited understanding of the inheritance of complex traits and the prevalence of technical issues, such as mislabeled individuals (off-types). To better understand the genetic architecture of cacao, in this study, 13 years of phenotypic data collected from four progeny trials in Bahia, Brazil were analyzed jointly in a multisite analysis. Three separate analyses (multisite, single site with and without off-types) were performed to estimate genetic parameters from statistical models fitted on nine important agronomic traits (yield, seed index, pod index, % healthy pods, % pods infected with witches broom, % of pods other loss, vegetative brooms, diameter, and tree height). Genetic parameters were estimated along with variance components and heritabilities from the multisite analysis, and a trial was fingerprinted with low-density SNP markers to determine the impact of off-types on estimations. Heritabilities ranged from 0.37 to 0.64 for yield and its components and from 0.03 to 0.16 for disease resistance traits. A weighted index was used to make selections for clonal evaluation, and breeding values estimated for the parental selection and estimation of genetic gain. The impact of off-types to breeding progress in cacao was assessed for the first time. Even when present at <5% of the total population, off-types altered selections by 48%, and impacted heritability estimations for all nine of the traits analyzed, including a 41% difference in estimated heritability for yield. These results show that in a mixed model analysis, even a low level of pedigree error can significantly alter estimations of genetic parameters and selections in a breeding program.

High-intensity Interval Training in the Boundaries of the Severe Domain: Effects on Sprint and Endurance Performance.

In order to compare the effects of two 4-week interval training programs performed at the lower (Critical Power, CP) or at the higher (The highest intensity at which V˙O2max is attained, IHIGH) intensities of the severe exercise domain on sprint and endurance cycling performance, 21 recreationally trained cyclists performed the Wingate Anaerobic Test (WAnT) and a 250-kJ time trial. Accumulated oxygen deficit (AOD), surface electromyography (RMS), and blood lactate kinetics were measured during the WAnT. Subjects were assigned to 105% CP or IHIGH groups. During the WAnT, significantly greater improvements in peak (Mean ±95%CI) (5.7±2.3% vs. 0.2±2.2%), mean power output (MPO) (3.7±2.0% vs. 0.5±1.8%), and RMS (17.8±7.4% vs. -15.7±7.9%) were observed in the IHIGH group (P<0.05). Higher and lower AOD, respectively, at the start and during the second half of the WAnT were observed after IHIGH training. The changes in RMS and MPO induced by the training were significantly correlated (r=0.584). The 2 interventions induced improvements in the 250-kJ time trial. In conclusion, although the improvements in endurance performance were similar, training at IHIGH led to higher gains in WAnT performance than training at 105%CP.

Plastic expression of heterochrony quantitative trait loci (hQTLs) for leaf growth in the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris).

Heterochrony, that is, evolutionary changes in the relative timing of developmental events and processes, has emerged as a key concept that links evolution and development. Genes associated with heterochrony encode molecular components of developmental timing mechanisms. However, our understanding of how heterochrony genes alter the expression of heterochrony in response to environmental changes remains very limited. We applied functional mapping to find quantitative trait loci (QTLs) responsible for growth trajectories of leaf area and leaf mass in the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) grown in two contrasting environments. We identified three major QTLs pleiotropically expressed under the two environments. Further characterization of the temporal pattern of these QTLs indicates that they are heterochrony QTLs (hQTLs) in terms of their role in influencing four heterochronic parameters: the timing of the inflection point, the timing of maximum acceleration and deceleration, and the duration of linear growth. The pattern of gene action by the hQTLs on each parameter was unique, being environmentally dependent and varying between two allometrically related leaf growth traits. These results provide new insights into the complexity of genetic mechanisms that control trait formation in plants and provide novel findings that will be of use in studying the evolutionary trends.

Asymmetric profiles and prewetting lines in the filling of planar slits with Ne.

The filling of slits with identical planar walls is investigated in the frame of the density functional theory. For this kind of slit, the confining potential is symmetric with respect to its central plane. Closed and open systems are studied by applying, respectively, the canonical and grand canonical ensembles (CE and GCE). Results obtained for the confinement of fluid Ne by alkaline surfaces are reported. The behavior of these systems is analyzed by varying the strength of the Ne-substrate attraction, the temperature T, and the coverage Γ(l). It is assumed that the one-body density of the fluid, ρ(r), is uniform along the (x, y) planes parallel to the walls, becoming a function of the coordinate z perpendicular to those planes. Two sorts of solutions are found for the density profile: (i) symmetric ones that follow the left-right symmetry of the potential exerted by the walls and (ii) asymmetric ones that break the symmetry of the slit. The pores are wide enough for determining prewetting (PW) lines and wetting and critical PW temperatures, i.e., T(w) and T(cpw), from the analysis of symmetric solutions provided by both the CE and GCE schemes. Asymmetric species are examined in detail for T > T(w). It is shown that for a given Ne-substrate pair at a fixed T both the CE and GCE frames yield only one asymmetric 2-fold degenerate stable profile (formed by a "thin" wetting film at one wall and a "thick" wetting film at the other) coexisting with two symmetric profiles (formed by "thin" or "thick" wetting films at the two walls), while the remaining asymmetric states are at best metastable. This feature occurs along PW lines and disappears at T(cpw).

Suggestive evidence for association between L-type voltage-gated calcium channel (CACNA1C) gene haplotypes and bipolar disorder in Latinos: a family-based association study.

OBJECTIVES: Through recent genome-wide association studies (GWASs), several groups have reported significant association between variants in the calcium channel, voltage-dependent, L-type, alpha 1C subunit (CACNA1C) and bipolar disorder (BP) in European and European-American cohorts. We performed a family-based association study to determine whether CACNA1C is associated with BP in the Latino population. METHODS: This study included 913 individuals from 215 Latino pedigrees recruited from the USA, Mexico, Guatemala, and Costa Rica. The Illumina GoldenGate Genotyping Assay was used to genotype 58 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that spanned a 602.9-kb region encompassing the CACNA1C gene including two SNPs (rs7297582 and rs1006737) previously shown to associate with BP. Individual SNP and haplotype association analyses were performed using Family-Based Association Test (version 2.0.3) and Haploview (version 4.2) software. RESULTS: An eight-locus haplotype block that included these two markers showed significant association with BP (global marker permuted p = 0.0018) in the Latino population. For individual SNPs, this sample had insufficient power (10%) to detect associations with SNPs with minor effect (odds ratio = 1.15). CONCLUSIONS: Although we were not able to replicate findings of association between individual CACNA1C SNPs rs7297582 and rs1006737 and BP, we were able to replicate the GWAS signal reported for CACNA1C through a haplotype analysis that encompassed these previously reported significant SNPs. These results provide additional evidence that CACNA1C is associated with BP and provides the first evidence that variations in this gene might play a role in the pathogenesis of this disorder in the Latino population.

ε-Keggin-based coordination networks: Synthesis, structure and application toward green synthesis of polyoxometalate@graphene hybrids.

Four coordination networks based on the {ε-PMo(V)(8)Mo(VI)(4)O(40)(OH)(4)Zn(4)} Keggin unit (εZn) have been synthesized under hydrothermal conditions. (TBA)(3){PMo(V)(8)Mo(VI)(4)O(36)(OH)(4)Zn(4)}[C(6)H(4)(COO)(2)](2) (ε(isop)(2)) is a 2D material with monomeric εZn units connected via 1,3 benzenedicarboxylate (isop) linkers and tetrabutylammonium (TBA) counter-cations lying between the planes. In (TPA)(3){PMo(V)(8)Mo(VI)(4)O(37)(OH)(3)Zn(4)}[C(6)H(3)(COO)(3)] (TPA[ε(trim)](∞)), 1D inorganic chains formed by the connection of εZn POMs, via Zn-O bonds, are linked via 1,3,5 benzenetricarboxylate (trim) ligands into a 2D compound with tetrapropylammonium (TPA) cations as counter-cations. (TBA){PMo(V)(8)Mo(VI)(4)O(40)Zn(4)}(C(7)H(4)N(2))(2)(C(7)H(5)N(2))(2)·12H(2)O (ε(bim)(4)) is a molecular material with monomeric εZn POMs bound to terminal benzimidazole (bim) ligands. Finally, (TBA)(C(10)H(10)N(4))(2)(HPO(3)){PMo(V)(8)Mo(VI)(4)O(40)Zn(4)}(2)(C(10)H(9)N(4))(3)(C(10)H(8)N(4)) (ε(2)(pazo)(4)) is a 1D compound with dimeric (εZn)(2) POMs connected by HPO(3)(2-) ions and terminal para-azobipyridine (pazo) ligands. In this compound an unusual bond cleavage of the central N[double bond, length as m-dash]N bond of the pazo ligand is observed. We report also a green chemistry-type one-step synthesis method carried out in water at room temperature using ε(2)(pazo)(4) and ε(isop)(2) as reducing agent of graphite oxide (GO) to obtain graphene (G). The POM@G hybrids were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray analysis, infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and cyclic voltammetry.